As of right now, Damian Lillard is still a member of the Portland Trail Blazers. This might not be for very long, though, after the seven-time All-Star recently demanded a trade from the same team that he’s been representing for the last 11 years. Dame has always been loyal to Portland but apparently, even this guy has his limits.
Dame Wants To Win It All With Giannis Antetokounmpo
Naturally, Dame’s trade demand sent shockwaves throughout the league. I would assume that every team in the NBA did their due diligence as to whether they had a path toward trading for the 32-year-old. After all, he’s the type of talent that could potentially propel a contender to a title favorite.
Incidentally, Dame’s old tweet from May of 2022 has now resurfaced amid all the uncertainty surrounding his future in Portland. In the tweet, Dame was asked to name the one player he would like to play with to help him get to the Finals and potentially win a championship. His answer was Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo (h/t Aseem Aggarwal of Sportskeeda):
Giannis https://t.co/x44aDOW4XM
— Damian Lillard (@Dame_Lillard) May 15, 2022
That’s very interesting.
Earlier this year, Dame had a more detailed comment about Giannis. In a GQ AMA, the Blazers superstar responded to a comment about a potential team-up with Antetokounmpo. In his response, Lillard detailed why he feels they would be a perfect fit:
“He’s a good playmaker. Good defender. Disruptive,” Lillard said. “And the way he plays, complements the way I play. I would bring something to the table that complements what he does, and vice versa.”
Sadly, it does not look like the Bucks are in any position to trade for Dame. However, it’s hard not to imagine how Lillard would look in a Bucks uniform alongside Giannis.
Miami Heat Are Frontrunners To Land Dame In Blockbuster Trade
At this point, the Miami Heat are still the clear frontrunners to land Dame. After all, the former Rookie of the Year himself identified South Beach as his preferred destination. Recent reports have indicated that the Blazers aren’t impressed with the Heat’s current offer, which means that this could be a long negotiation ahead. It also wouldn’t be surprising if a few other teams try to join in on the action.
However, given how it is Dame’s clear wish to join the Heat, you can be sure that Portland will do everything it can to make his dream come true. After all, that organization owes him that much.
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